SEBASTIAN ARCELUS • HUNTER FOSTER • JENNY POWERS
JOANNA GLEASON • MIGUEL CERVANTES • ROBERT PETKOFF
PEARL SUN • KEN PAGE • FRED APPLEGATE • PHYLLIS SOMMERVILLE

PATRICK CUMMINGS • JAMES MOYE • ROBB SAPP
ANA MARIA ANDRICAIN • ALAN H. GREEN • ALESSA NEECK
ALEXANDER SCHEITINGER • IDARA VICTOR

THE LAST RIDE

It’s no secret that almost all characters of this new musical are dead. For them all, it’s just another ordinary day. As usually they are going with their lives and all catch the same subway ride. But soon they discover they are stranded on a subway carriage and the machinist tells them that the only way to get out is to remember a time when they were happy. None of them was prepared for this last ride and to convey that kind of memories isn’t as easy as it seems.
SMALL SHOW, GREAT CAST

The main character of the show is the subway carriage, that moves as easy as the members of the cast, that’s also the main piece of the set. Everything revolves around it and once again Susan Stroman show us how to keep a show moving (even if the dance doesn’t take a big part on it) and how to grab our attention.

Lead by Hunton Foster (whose big moment is with the defying gravity number “Step Up the Ladder”) and Sebastian Arcelus (sincere with “Happiness”), the cast is simply perfect and their characters sound real. Each one of them has their moment in the spotlight, ones with better results than others.

My favorite moments were “Flibberty Jibbers and Wobbly Knees”, where a delightful Phyllis Somerville remembers a II World War ball, and “Best Seats in the Ballpark”, where an touching Fred Applegate remembers a baseball game he went with his dad. To be honest, I cried in both numbers.

But there’s more, Ken Page get’s all emotional with “The Boy Inside Your Eyes”, Robert Petkoff and Pearl Sun have fun with “Family Flashcards”, Jenny Powers strongly delivers her “Gstaad”, Miguel Cervantes is surprisingly tender with “The Tooth Fairy Song” and Joanna Gleason goes hippie with “Road to Nirvana”, the weak point of the show.

AFTER THOUGHTS

Personally, I think Susan Stroman and John Weidman did it again. After CONTACT they give us another good piece of musical theatre, this time with an interesting new score by Scott Frankel and Michael Korie (the songs won’t stick in your mind, but they work in the context of the show).

In a time of crisis it’s nice to see a show about happiness and hope. Some people may call it slushy and manipulative, but I don’t care. I love to get emotional at the theatre and I really cared for the characters.

By the end of show I’m sure each one of us is thinking about the happiest moment of our lives. Don’t miss it!

Music by SCOTT FRANKEL   Lyrics by MICHAEL KORIE 

Book by JOHN WEIDMAN

Directed and Choregraphed by SUSAN STROMAN